5 Second Half Suggestions

Share this:

Okay, so most of you have taken Roy O off the board. That’s probably where he belongs, along with Carlos, Lance and Hunter. You won’t convince me that anyone else on the 25-man roster is untouchable though.

So what do you do for the second half of the season to make this team either a contender or at least interesting to watch and perhaps shoot for a winning or break-even season?

1. First and foremost: Admit the first half was a bust and the experiments — Burke in center, Pence to Round Rock, platoon in right — and the gambles — Lane, Ensberg, Woody, Jennings, etc. — just didn’t work like you expected. Management seems to still be in denial on this team’s talent and there will be no progress until they get past that point. Time may prove Woody and Wandy are viable end-of-the-rotation guys, but time is not on the Astros’ side.

2. Shuffle the roster over the All Star break or at least by the trade deadline. Move the dead weight and give Garner a little more flexibility. Releasing Rick White and bringing in Matt Albers was a good start. It’s time for Morgan Ensberg to join Jason Lane, either in Round Rock, but more likely in another major league uniform. It’s probably time Brian Moehler moves on, too.

3. Move Hunter Pence to leadoff and bat Mark Loretta second. Pence’s speed, aggressiveness and hustle are the kind of player you need at the top. Loretta is more suited to the two-hole than fifth. Plus their OBP (Pence .374, Loretta .401), gives Berkman and Lee a lot of opportunities. The fact the Astros are 12-2 when Biggio scores twice in a game tells you the team needs a consistent leadoff force. That’s Mr. Pence. You can argue that Pence is better off in the two-hole, but the only real option is to use a Biggio/Burke platoon there and leave Pence where he is. Here’s my lineup:

Pence

Loretta

Berkman

Lee

Lamb

Biggio/Burke

Scott

Ausmus

4. Put a contract offer on the table for Jason Jennings before the trade deadline. If he balks, hesitates, rolls his eyes, or seems disingenuous, send him packing for what you can get and bring up Troy Patton. The Astros will need a #2 next year and they shouldn’t wait until the winter to see if it will be Jennings. Can Chris Sampson fill that role? Maybe too early to tell, but he is certainly pitching like a #3.

5. Act like winners. Too much panic — even among fans — in the first half. Carry yourself like a winner! Baseball is a game of momentum and attitude. Garner should find a lineup and stay with it. Purpura should give him a better roster to work with. Don’t just sit back and hope the team you’ve got is going to get the job done. Other teams are making moves to improve, why not the Astros? You don’t have to go out and make a blockbuster trade, but make decisions more quickly on the Lanes and Ensbergs and don’t let those type situations linger.

5b. Play guys like Chris Burke and Luke Scott. Neither has played steady enough to gauge their talent long term. Personally, I believe both can contribute in the right situation. Let Burke play for Biggio more and when Biggio is in the lineup, make sure Burke is in the lineup somewhere (SS?). Both Burke and Scott can provide spark just by the way they play the game.

Sure the list could go 10 or 15 ideas deep. These are just a few things that could ignite this mess of a first half and provide hope.

• •• ••• •• •

Have you seen Phil Garner’s rotation coming out of the All Star break? The Astros get an extra day of Thursday, starting a new series in Chicago on Friday.

Jason Jennings opens the series, followed by Roy Oswalt and Woody Williams. Wandy Rodriguez and Chris Sampson follow to complete the rotation out of the break.

• •• ••• •• •

Ken Rosenthal says the Astros are going to stand pat on trading Brad Lidge. That’s primarily because Drayton McLane still believes the Astros can get back into the race. Chad Qualls or Dan Wheeler would apparently be the preferred tradees if the Astros do make a trade, though.

Share this:

61 Responses

Yes Art Howe led the NL in batting average in 1980 or 1981 but was left off of the All star team by Fat Oaf Tom Lasorda who was booed in Houston for years for that move plus a similar one. The similar move was not letting Joe Neikro pitch at all in the same All Star game despite Joe having the best record and stats that year and he should have started the game. He was the only player not used by Fat Tommy.

Hunter Pence should have been an All Star instead of the slumping Beltran, but he didn’t have enough at bats until right before the break, so most people outside of H Town don’t even know who he is. If he was in the top 10 all year, he might have made it instead of Rowand.

I guess the Cards Manager likes playing the middle 3 games in the NL park in the World Series, otherwise why not let Pujols get a walkoff grand salami to win the All Star game?

All of this talk of the Stros getting 91 wins is stupid. Last year, the Cards won 83 and the World Series. We won 82 and just missed. The Brewers could falter down the stretch and end up just north of .500 so just focus on games behind, that’s all that matters. The Astros are close enough and the Brewers are vulnerable enough to make this race interesting, so don’t give up just yet.

I don’t mean to pile on robley but the new CBA does not lengthen the time a player is under club control while in the minors.

However one thing that was changed was the removal of the DFE (draft, follow, evaluate) option for teams, where they controlled a drafted player who did not sign until one week prior to the next year’s draft. Houston has been fairly adept at using this process, landing players such as Daryl Kile, Roy Oswalt and Matt Albers over the years. Now teams must sign all draft picks by mid-August (I think the 15th). All unsigned players are eligible for the next year’s draft.

That cracks me up. Wandy has surprised me, but even if he’s spot on, his stuff is nowhere near Johan’s. He doesn’t throw as hard, he doesn’t have the devastating changeup. Do you realize how good Johan Santana is? That he’s the best pitcher in the majors, and has been for the past three or four years. Not arguably … that word that broadcasters and such like to throw out. The best. No debate. None. That’s hard to do.

Houston has played without a catcher for a couple years, so no big deal

It was a big oops … Pence should have been CF, of course!

Lisa, I’ve never thought that Barrett was a great defensive catcher, but I’ve never heard an expert say he’s horrible. Defensive evaluations by fans are often reactive and just visual. For example, many folks still think Andruw Jones is an elite defender, despite the range factor numbers which show otherwise. Many people don’t understand just how amazing a defender Adam Everett is.

Barrett might be very bad with the glove, I just have never seen any real proof.

I know, however, from stats that Ausmus isn’t a good hitter. Barrett has been a very good hitter, especially for a catcher, the past two years. He’s not been all that good this year.

Still, there was no real loss involved in these moves for the Padres. They got better, just as the Astros would have gotten better, even if Barrett and Ausmus would have split time.

But, the Pads were better to begin with, seeing as they have Jake Peavy, Chris Young and a killer pen.

Actually the only criticism from me that was probably not legitimate was concerning management’s overlooking Johann Santana. In retrospect they probably cannot be faulted since he didn’t show much in his four years in the minors.(not five) And the Astros are certainly not alone in overlooking and losing good prospects.

It’s my understanding that under the new Collective Agreement, one year has been added to the time a team can control a minor league player.

Who knows? If that had been in effect in 2000, Santana might be an Astro today.

But that’s alright. We’ve got someone potentially as good. His name is Wandy Rodriguez.

Sorry, my friend, that is woefully inaccurate. Their minor league stats for this season show that they’d have very little likelihood of success at the major-league level, and even if they were successful, I doubt they would have more success than Burke.

why bench biggio now? he’s actually doing quite well at this moment. why the heck do you want to play burke? do you actually think he will perform well? he won’t. he simply is not good enough. lamb and even other minor leaguers (josh anderson, saccomano, and brooks conrad) all deserve a roster spot over burke. trade burke and let him start over somewhere else.

This comes from Peter Gammons’ ESPN blog. It also proves Kevin Towers and the Padres are far more swift than the Astros management.

“SAN FRANCISCO — We still hear names that could be traded — from Junior Griffey and Adam Dunn to Mark Teixeira. But think about this: Come mid-August, the two most significant positional acquisitions could end up being Milton Bradley and Michael Barrett, whom Kevin Towers essentially acquired for nothing.

Not that that kind of eBay shopping is novel to Towers. After all, he and Bud Black have assembled the best bullpen in the game — a necessity in Petco Park, where games are like soccer … with scores of 1-1, 2-2. Take that entire bullpen crew, from Trevor Hoffman to Heath Bell, Scott Linebrink, Cla Meredith, Kevin Cameron, et al, and do you know how many current major leaguers Towers traded to acquire them?

Doug Mirabelli. Period.”

Some bloggers here commented that the signing of Chan Ho Park was no risk, and therefore, a decent move. The problem, he’s no good.

But, what if Houston could have acquired two pretty good players, for virtually nothing. Well, maybe the Cubs wouldn’t have wanted to deal within the division and maybe Milton Bradley suggested the Padres, but I wonder if Houston event tried, because this lineup would have looked a lot better than what we have today:

1. Bradley RF

2. Loretta 2B

3. Berkman 1B

4. Lee LF

5. Pence RF

6. Lamb 3B

7. Barrett C

8. Everett/Bruntlett SS

Hmm … Yeah, I know, I know … Oswalt and Barrett aren’t exactly friends and Milton has been a pain. Well, they’re also talented. And, I think Roy and the rest of the boys will make things work if given a much better chance to win. Ausmus would keep Barrett in line and Milton might fit right in, just as Carl Everett did.

You are now banking on either Scott or Burke regaining their stroke. Don’t know if that is a good bet or not but I would make it. That team would be competitive; moreover, this is an achievable and realistic goal. The present team cannot acquire all of the necessary talent to be a world champion in 1 or even 2 years from their current state.

I don’t want to put Pence in at leadoff. Although I want him to get as many AB’s as possible he’s doing fine and he doesn’t need any additional pressure.

I’ve been trying to figure out how I’d do it for a few weeks. Lee, Berkman and Pence. On any good team they’d be 3,4 5 I think. I’m not sure exactly who goes in which spot, but Berkman needs to be protected, so I guess I’d tinker with Pence in the 5 hole.

Loretta would be a good #2. I’d put Burke in at leadoff and see if he can tote the note.

Jennings must be traded. Unfortunately the fiasco that is the Jennings deal is going to end up with Purpura having egg all over his face. Jennings is 1-5 so his value is low, but he’s useless to us. If we don’t move him then this fall when he signs elsewhere we’ll have lost 2 good young pitchers and Taveras for nothing.

Drayton doesn’t mind signing Texas homies for the team but he isn’t going to get in a bidding war for a mercenary. He either signs in the next 3 weeks or he has to be moved.

The traditional benchmarks at the beginning of any MLB season to win the division is usually 90 wins and 72 losses.

As of July 9th, the Astros must win 51 games and lose only 22 games the rest of the season to reach the 90 win benchmark. Will that be enough to win the 2007 Central Division?

For the Brewers to reach 90 wins and 72 losses, the team will have to win 41 games and lose only 33 games. For the the Cubs, Cards and the Pirates to reach the 90 win benchmark, their win-loss record would fall inbetween the Astros’ and the Brewers’ projected records.

The question is can the 2007 Astros beat the rest of the teams to 90 wins? Is 90 wins going to be enough to win the division?

Are the Astros good enough to win 70.8% of their games to reach the traditional benchmark?

Pence as the 2 hitter, not lead off, poorer pitch selection – Burke should hit #1 and ideally Loretta would be your #2 (switching between 3B and SS) with Pence hitting 5th, but unless someone in the 6 spot is actually making contact (Lamb or Scott) – his AVG will take a hit – but then again, he can hit almost anything (gangly! in a good way).

Play Scott a lot in the 2nd half and don’t play Puma in RF – at all! Even if it means Lamb sits more.

I agree totally with the Jennings thought process – Atlanta will most likely be despirite at the deadline, but you’re not going to get Salty – not yet anyway. If he’s gone, I’d rather see Albers and McLamore take turns getting their shot than allow Patton to get eaten up at the ML level this year.

Get Ensberg to either AAA or out and move someone from RR up – there are 2 candidates.

No. 6 on my list is go find a really good catcher in the Brewers (Estrada), Marainers (Jojima), or Braves (Salty and McCann) systems. But they have to be further along than Towles, cuz we got nothing else in the system until you get down to Lexington and Sapp is barely 19!

The other day, I read of McLane’s first meeting with Tal Smith, and the new owner ask, “What do I need to know about baseball?” to which Smith replied, “#1 Pitching, #2 Fielding, and #3 Hitting…. and…IN THAT ORDER”. This is what wins…this from a better baseball man than I.

Houston has always been about pitching. Even in the ugly years (60′s and 70′s)….we were pitching….that might have been all we had, but we did have pitching. Do we trade Oswalt? Please. You do not trade away great pitching, and you do everything you can to acquire…or better yet….develop it. You want to see 58 broken legs? Just leave a message to the other 29 GM’s…with three words in it…”Oswalt…Lidge…Trade”.

I know half out there are saying, “Lidge ???”

The keys to this teams success are Berkman and Lidge. Until Berkman’s bat gets going…we are not going anywhere. It won’t matter how many or how much we get in trades. The other night, bottom of the ninth with the winning run in scoring position, Berkman could have ended the marathon like he’s done a hundred times in the past. If he delivers in the clutch…how many of our losses this year are wins….four…five…..ten? Berkman is this teams key to turning it around. When Berkman’s bat gets going….others will follow.

Lidge was “lights out” up until “the blast”. When you think about it (as painful as that may still be), it was probably the two best in baseball…going against one another. Their best against our best. A classic baseball moment. Was Lidge damaged after that pitch? Sure….mentally…but not physically. There is nothing wrong with his arm. He still has one of the best fastball/slider combos in the game.

Out of spring training this year, Lidge was struggling with his mechanics and working in an off speed pitch (I think?). Before going on the DL, he was returning to form. If anyone would like a second gut blow….let’s trade Lidge….let him return to “lights out”….then come running out on the field with all the tomahawks going….that blow my friends would be worse than the first.

We have 14 plus blown saves this year. The past few years….all year….Lidge lost maybe 3 or 4 games. Wheeler is not a closer….he is our set up man. Qualls is our 7th inning arm. To straighten out our bull pen….Lidge needs to come back. It was bad enough losing Wagner…..we can not afford to lose Lidge. I’m just thankful no one threw him a shovel that night.

Jennings is going to chase the FA cash cow after the season and I don’t think we should get in the way. He’s our best trade bait…damaged goods and all….he is who we must move. Atlanta is 2 back of the Mets…I believe they need some pitching, and we need a catcher. We should offer Jennings for Saltalamacchia straight up…..no more…..and see who blinks first. We need to make trades from a position of strength and not weakness (Jennings). If Atlanta doesn’t bite….move on.

Wanndy’s 4 hit complete game the other night was very nice. Like others, I think his next few outings will show us what we want to see. He may be our #3….and a strong #3.

Chip, I like your suggestions on the batting line up, and as tempting as it may be to stick Pence in the leadoff spot…..he would be wasted. I know everyone is about to curse, spit, throw something and beat the dog …. but right now Berkman should not be hitting in the 3 hole. He is not our best hitter. Pence should be batting #3. Lorretta is a contact…line drive…to all fields #2.

The way I’d like to see Phil role the dice:

Burke/Biggio/Bruntlett

Lorretta

Pence

Lee

Berkman

Lamb

Scott

Ausmus/Munson

We all know this club is a second half team. But what’s it going to take to make this years second half? 40 points for Berkman, and Lidge returning to form….Impossible?

What’s the scoop on Tim Raines down at RR? He’s only played in 49 games, 111 AB, .351, OPS .884. Where did we get him? Is he the son, or related to the ex Montreal Expo great?

Why do we want to tinker with the lineup while we are hitting? Pence is perfect in the two hole where pitchers are forced to pitch to him because Berkman and Lee follow him. He is great at setting the table for them with his combo of power and speed. Sure, Loretta is not your typical 5 hole hitter, but I’d rather have a good contact hitter there than Ensberg. I think with the team we have, Biggio/Burke leading off is the only way to go. I think Burke could possibly develop into a decent leadoff hitter, but mainly I think we weaken the lineup if we move a guy like Pence out of his spot and put him in a spot where he is less fit to handle. Sure he would be better than Bidge leading off, but we would have a dropoff in production from the 2 and 5 hole. Leave the lineup alone and get Ichiro but morel likely, Byrnes to leadoff next year. There aren’t many options for a 3rd baseman that can hit in the 5 hole, so I would have no problem with Loretta coming back as a utility starter and LAmb being the 3rd baseman 65-70% of the time. Utility starter means that Loretta plays 80-85% of the time all over the infield. Some mention Mike Lowell but I don’t think he is a long-term option, and we should be patient and go with what we have while the young guys improve. Who knows, maybe the Dodgers would trade us Nomar for cheap and he could be a short-term solution at 3rd. I’d rather that than overspending on an overrated Lowell for multiple years. We need to trade Jennings and focus on bringing in a reliable veteran in the offseason….We are not getting Zambrano so forget about it.

Here’s my 2 cents worth. Play Burke at 2B against all right handers during the next road trip. Let Biggio play against left handers. Play Bruntlett at SS. Platoon Loretta and Lamb at 3B. Play Scott in RF. Let Munson catch Jennings, and Williams. The offense seems to be turning things around. The only real need is still relief pitching.

And I agree on the Jennings signing. If he hasn’t signed by July 30, he probably won’t.

Trade him. IMO he won’t sign…why should he?

The one thing that Oswalt, Sampson, Rodrigues, and Williams all have in common is a desire to play for the Astros. Jennings doesn’t have that committment to the team. He’s a “go to the highest bidder” type of guy.

I think a rotation in 2008 of Oswalt, Sampson, Patton, and Rodrigues, plus a #2 that wants to play in Houston, would be fine. Go with the lineup that I mentioned above, and concentrate on getting a new catcher, and I think the Astros will be very competitive next year.

I find it humorous that we discuss who is to be “taken off the board” without regard to contractual stipulations. For example, both Carlos Lee and Roy Oswalt have no-trade clauses. At least them, if not others such as Berkman and even Lorretta (who has enough years that such a clause is inevitable).So any discussion of who goes is a waste of time if it includes the no-trade guys.I think we’re left with just a few of possibilities, including Lamb and Lidge. The Astros are otherwise boxed in.

#6 – Pray for the Reds. If the Reds have a fire sale, we’re going to have problems. We only face them 3 more times, but Milwaukee faces them 13 times and Chicago faces them 12 times in the second half. The good(?) news is that we have 9 more games (6 at home) with Milwaukee which gives us a chance to make up ground – whether we can do it or not is another story. Milwaukee has a much better second half schedule than we do so we’re really going to have to win against some tough teams to make up ground. I think we’ll know if there is anything to salvage from this season after the Dodgers and Padres series later this month.

Although it’s not a great record, I think it’s safe to say the Astros have played their best baseball the last month. Hitting-wise for sure. Bullpen fires have been the main culprit the past month, but that looked better the last 2 series. So lets look at some starting pitcher stats for about the last 30 days or so:

Pitcher A – 40 IP 3.15 ERA 1.03 WHIP

Pitcher B – 39 IP 3.92 ERA 1.64 WHIP

Pitcher C – 38 IP 4.46 ERA 1.17 WHIP

Pitcher D – 36 IP 4.66 ERA 1.47 WHIP

Pitcher E – 32 IP 6.19 ERA 1.41 WHIP

A guess to who’s who?

Pitcher A – Wandy

Pitcher B – Roy

Pitcher C – Woody

Pitcher D – Jennings

Pitcher E – Sampson

Now history tells us Roy is the man of this staff, but for the last month Wandy has easily been our best pitcher with 4 wins to go with those numbers. If anyone has been pitching like a #3 it’s him, not Sampson. Sampson hasn’t been very good the past month but his overall numbers say he is a solid #5 for us. Plus this is just his first full season. If he is learning anything he should only get better in the future. No one has been down on Williams as much as I have. Still don’t like the signing, but if he continues to post those numbers of the past month the rest of the season I can definitely live with that. Jennings on the other hand hasn’t been nearly good enough for the role he was traded for. I wouldn’t even try to sign him actually, but move him before the deadline. The only report about money I have seen on him said he is seeking 12 million per season. If that is indeed true, adios, the sooner the better.

I don’t want Pence hitting 1st. I see your reasoning for it, but I would prefer him in the 5 hole to drive in those runs. But it looks like he will be staying in the 2 hole.

I couldn’t agree more about Burke and Scott both getting extensive playing time the 2nd half. We need a good evaluation of both. Lets hope against hope it happens.

If Milwaukee plays .500 ball the rest of the way they will be 86-76. We have to go 47-26 to match that. It’s a tall order with our current roster, not likely to happen, but it’s something to shoot for.

Bruntlett, Scott, and Burke need to get regular playing time from here on out.

Jennings looks like the only viable option as a #2 next year. No other FA can fill that role and I’m not sure we can afford Zambrano.

Good news is I think the offense will be fine. Berkman will hit better, we’ll have a whole year of Pence, Burke/Loretta at 2b, and Lamb at 3b. As long as we don’t have an entire team go into a slump like this year, the offense will be fine.

The other good news is we’ll have a very crowded middle to back-end of the rotation next year (Williams, Rodriquez, Backe, Sampson, Patton, Albers, Nieve).

I agree with the above posts that Pence would be wasted as a lead off hitter. He has proven himself to be a proven RBI guy who can also get on base for Berkman/Lee. The problem with having Loretta hit 2nd is that he doesn’t have the power to drive in as many runs. Also, Pence’s homerun power shouldn’t be limited to solo homeruns (by leading off the game). He’s on fire and should not be touched. I agree that Burke would be a better lead off player. He can’t hit into double plays that way, and overall, he’s been swinging a hot bat as of late. He has good speed (Maybe the Astros can actually steal a few bases in the 2nd half) and can hit singles and doubles at ease.

I’m also starting to lean towards the Bruntlett SS bandwagon. We’ll see how he spends the rest of his starting time. The next few weeks will be very interesting.

Good blog. I don’t necessarily agree with all of your suggestions, though:

- forget putting a contract on the table for Jennings; off-load him if you can.

- Burke’s arm isn’t good enough to play SS.

- I’d favor platooning Burke & Biggio at second, and letting both of them hit lead off. Pence does hit for a good average, but doesn’t walk enough. Hitting him second allows his high batting average to drive in the leadoff guys hitting ahead of him, and he’ll have Berkman behind him, so he should see decent pitches.

- Loretta and/or Lamb should be dealt to a contender for a good prospect or prospects. I know, they are two of the Astro’s best players. But if this season is over, I say you go out and get value for next year. A young #2 pitcher would be nice, as would a SS prospect.

I agree with your points 1, 2, 4.

The only reason I can think that they are playing Ensberg right now is to try and prop up his meager trade value. They’re hoping he’ll somehow get lukewarm (I won’t say “hot”).

I don’t think anyone is in a “panic” over the Astros. Since this is the first year — that I can recall — that The Houston Chronicle has allowed reader’s comments, on blogs and otherwise — I think what you, and your colleagues in downtown may be experiencing is — years — and years — of frustration with the Astros, and the inability of management to put together a consistent winner in the National League. We have had our moments, but compared to the other “expansion” team — the NY Mets, who came in the league at the same time as the Astros, and have won two World Series — our moments — are becoming forgettable.

This season is reminiscent of too many others just like it. Seemingly good talent — consistent bad play.

Maybe the fans have just had enough. That’s not “panic” — it’s common sense.

Nobody continues to buy a bad product. No matter how hard the sell — and regardless of whence it comes.

I like the idea of trading Jennings if you cant sign him to an extension.

Burke, Luke Scott and one of the Wheeler/Qualls/Lidge troika are all additional trading chips.

Ensberg needs to go. Way past time on that one. His at-bats are better used on…..anyone.

_________

This season is over. The sooner the Astros figure that one out the better. July 8th 2004 we were 3 games out of the wild card. July 8th 2005 we were 7 games out of the wild card with only 2 teams to pass.

Big difference in those two years and this year; 10 games out with 10 teams to pass for the wild card.

We will probably have the worst record in the NL by the time we finish our road trip after the all-star break. I dont think we have the worst team in the league…but we are far from the best.

Facts…Biggio will announce his retirement very soon (august) and the second half we will see more of Burke and Biggio splitting time at second, while Berkman will continue to play right field with Lamb and Loretta splitting time between third and first.

Lineup:

Burke/Biggio

Pence

Berkman

Lee

Lamb/Loretta

Munson/Ausmus

Bruntlett

Now, we will see Ensberg sent down to AAA and Troy Patton moved up to the bullpen by end of August to start getting his feet wet in the majors before being one of the starting five for 2008.

Astros will NOT make the playoffs this season no matter what anyone says. But will get more interesting to go watch. Go Stros!

“Time may prove Woody and Wandy are viable end-of-the-rotation guys, but time is not on the Astros’ side.”

what?!?!

i was no wandy supporter before the season but he has proven me wrong and you’re way off base with throwing wandy in on that statement. wandy has better numbers than sampson and you say he’s pitching like a #3.

wandy is one of the few pleasent surprises this season and he deserves credit. he is more than a back of the rotation guy.

FL billy, I think you hit the nail on the head with your evaluations of Bruntlett and Scott. We haven’t had an adequate look at either one as a line-up regular. I have always liked the way the Brunt carries himself, as he seems a very heads-up player who could be an over-achiever. Scott is a tail-buster who plays with passion like Pence. Even though he’s in a current 0 for 11, Scott has continued to hit the ball hard, and will get his share of RBI if he can get in that groove again. Let’s see what these two guys can do on a regular basis!

I don’t agree, however, that we should count the team out of the race just yet. Even though they appear to have dug too deep a hole to get out of, it looks like this current rebound has some legs, and we have in fact gained 4 games in the standings in the last ten days or so. The Brewers have a long way to go, and in another month we could be breathing down their necks. Stranger things have happened. (Someone with a good memory help me out here: Which year was it in the early 80s/late 70s when the Dodgers were 11 games back in September and made it to the world series?) Anyway, I am one who has been pretty disappointed this year but have yet to panic.

Question: Why is Bruntlett not a possibility at SS? He carries a reputation as a light hitter from his early days and seems type-cast as utility player. However, he is fielding SS quite well, hit .277 last year and was at .300 at some point in today’s games and is getting a significant number of walks. Burke: Again, play him most road games at 2B and some at home to get a meaningful evaluation as a mlb 2B. (Loretta and Lamb at 3B) I don’t believe Biggio will try to come back next year, but perhaps management has to say that it is time to move on after this year. Scott: Play him almost all games at RF to get a true evaluation. I think he can be a dependable rbi man and play decent RF defense, but platooning him will not tell the tale. Problem: Management doesn’t accept what I think is obvious, that being that the Astros are essentially out of the race and need to make decisions to be able to upgrade by next season.

I agree with all of your comments Chip except for the top of the order.

Burke is an OBP / doubles hitter with speed. It is time for Biggio to sit and Burke to play full time and if Burke plays, he needs to hit at the top of the order as he did today. That is where he excels.

Loretta is a goof OBP hitter with good bat control, but he does lack speed. For that reason, he should not be a #1 hitter as some have suggested, but #2 is a good slot for him. Pence has speed, but he also has a lot of pop and ability to drive runs. I think Pence is better suited for 5th when Loretta plays. When Loretta sits, then Pence can hit #2. Pence has proven that he can hit just about anywhere in the lineup. That is something that Burke cannot do.

Burke hit well in the 6th hole the other night, but that was the exception. Burke excels in the #1 and #2 slots, but does not do well farther down in the order – his splits demonstrate this clearly.

Leave Burke in the #1 slot, hit Loretta #2 when he plays, and move Pence between #2 and #5 accordingly.

As for trades, Woody must be at the top of the stack, The Astros need to trade Woody and eat his salary this year to free up $6 ml in salary for the FA market. Would love to see the Astros land Torii Hunter and Mike Lowell, but that is going to take some cash.

Speaking of the FA market…sadly, Buhrle just signed an extension with the Sox. So, he is gone. The good news is that the Cards won’t get him.

That leaves Zambrano and his antics and he is going to cost close to $16ml. No other FA is worth shooting for. Jennings does not appear to be a “bonafide” #2 and he has a lot of risk, but he might be the best choice at this point. So, I agree with you Chip. If the Astros can get a reasonable deal done with Jennings, then do it. Make it loaded with incentive clauses so he has the potential to bring in more than $12ml if he performs. If the Astros can’t get it done with Jennings quickly as you said, then trade him and salvage something from that deal. The focus of a trade should be shortstop. If the Astros could obtain a more balanced shortstop, then Everett and his salary would be expendable.

Not sure if Sampson is a bonafide #3, but a solid #4 for sure. As for Wandy, his home numbers are fantastic, but a 6+ road ERA and a high pitch count which inhibits him from going deep into most games are two big issues. If Wandy can improve those two issues, he might be very good. At this point, he is too inconsistent to hold a gauranteed spot in the rotation.

Next year should be an interesting competition with Backe and Neive returning and Patton competing. The Astros should have a pretty solid pen and back end of the rotation. The #2 spot is the big looming pitching problem.

Brian, I read that same article and I sure hope it is incorrect. Randy Smith is the son of the Astros President Tal Smith. Randy Smith and Garner were both released from Detroit at the same time. Randy had a very poor reputation in Detroit for letting quality players get away. I don’t know what to make of Purpura, but clearly Randy Smith is not the answer.

What should make Astros fandom more than a little worried about this scenario is that Randy has never in 10 seasons as a GM built a winning ballclub. He decimated the Tigers’ farm system and signed a slew of players to ridiculous contracts which hamstrung the franchise for years after he and Garner were fired in Detroit (on the same day, BTW).

Why would the columnist make up this story? Duh. He needs to fill space. He sees the Astros are not performing to expectation, knows Tal Smith is the President of the club and someone reminded him that Randy is Tal’s son.

question – who drove in more runs, ensberg or pence and loretta COMBINESD this series? and mo was only in 2 games and they were in 4?

and i completely disagree with wasting pence in leadoff – your leadoff guy should be burke. burke is just totally wasted in the 6 hole. and for all yall obsessed with speed, burke is faster than pence and a better base stealer (look at the minor league stats too)

loretta is dreadful – there is no other word – at short. he almost nevfer gets to any balls to his left and can’t get to balls fast enough to turn the DP. i don’t care about “errors” i care about plays not made and hits given up. you think that doesn’t matter, go look at sampson’s stats with and without everett at short.

brunt is decent at short – bettern loretta, that is for SURE

moehler is worse at pitching than ensberg is at hitting/fielding and moehler should be the first to go. ensberg does indeed need another home. he can’t be sent down, by the way. too many years in the bigs.

jennings needs to be traded, yes. but bring patton up to get his teeth kicked in for what? i’d rather start mclemore, who was pretty good in AAA and at least has a little more experience.

if they move scott they better have a plan for replacing him. lance is not the long term solution in right.

and the reason i am “panicking” as you put it, is because i don’t trust mclane to make a decent trade with the few guys he has to trade.

Chip, saying the Astros had a bad first half is one thing, but giving up on the team is another. I can tell you that it seems to me that many in the media had given up on the Astros a long time ago, and now they are saying maybe the Astros can make it. Which is it Chip? The Astros are 11 games out from the Brewers in the loss column and 10 and 1/2 out overall. Most of the Astros media cannot figure out what to do or say. Can we please just shut our mouths and really start going for the Astros, because they are going to need it!! They have had a bad first half, but as bad as a first half they have had they can come back with a great second half and that might just be enough, the Brewers are starting to struggle a little bit, the Astros had a chance to get within 8 games of them but they just couldn’t do it. Don’t forget the Astros have 6 more home games than road games after the 9 game road trip, that could mean a lot to the Astros. Anyway, maybe the Astros should admit they had a bad first half, but it is not over and they should not give up on Jennings or some of the other guys you mentioned, gosh he is only 29. Ensberg and Lane are the only guys who should go in my mind. If the Astros struggle out of the gate and get 15 games back then maybe you think about a trade, but not now.

I prefer switching them. Having Pence at lead-off is a waste, I think. When he’s in the 5-hole he can knock guys in; if he’s leading off he’ll have fewer opportunities to do that. Loretta is not the best guy for the 5-hole, but he fits extremely well in the 2-hole.

“Too much panic — even among fans”

Ouch…low blow, my friend.

To be honest, I don’t think the front office has done much panicking (the fans have outpaced them greatly there). I can’t deny that the fans have done some panicking, after all, most of us thought this team would be a lot better. It looked like this team would be a lot better.

And then the season actually started.

I was including me in the sometime panic — or perhaps over-reacting or anxious — arena. You’re right, my expectations were much higher that what we’ve seen.

Playing Burke at SS is just asking for trouble, but I agree with your approach/suggestion regarding Jennings.

You did not, however, add my comments to your last blog entry so I will repeat them here: the person who responded that the Astros left Johan Santana in A-ball too long was just flat off-base. Satana was only in the organization for 4 years, not 5 years. Each of those years he went up a level – from the Dominican Summer League to the Gulf Coast League, the NY-Penn League to the Midwest League. How is this to be seen as “languishing” in A-ball? He posted a 4.66 ERA in his last season with the Astros, for crying out loud.

A contenting team in Houston did not have space on the 40-man for a kid who was likely 3 years away from helping. A crappy Minnesota team was willing to burn a 25-man roster spot on a kid who stunk up their bullpen for two years and finally blossomed in the second half of his third year with the team.

It’s getting rather tedious reading about how slowly the Astros develop players. Not once have I read anyone give a concrete example of failure to properly promote players up the ladder and there have been tons of examples to the contrary. Mitch Einertson is the latest supposed example given by a Purpura/development detractor.

Well, it’s clearly fact that Einertson had a wonderful debut in the Appy League. However, in the subsequent two seasons Einertson suffered not only far less success on the field but personal problems contributed heavily to his poor play. These personal issues caused the Astros to eventually send him home for a stretch.

Thankfully it seems Einertson has ironed out his problems and is playing better. Next year, though, will be telling. He’ll be 22 years old and likely playing in AA ball. If he makes it or does not make it no one can make a legitimate claim the Astros did not handle his progression through the system properly.

Chip, I was reading on ProSportsDaily.com today and the Newark Star Ledger is reporting that the Astros are setting up to fire Tim Purpura at seasons end and hire ex Padres and Tigers GM Randy Smith as the new GM of the Astros….. Here is an exact quote….

“Word is, the Astros are looking to make former Tigers and Padres GM Randy Smith their next GM”

Now normally I would disregard this rumor as being made up because it was reported in another city. But why would they make up a rumor of us hiring Randy Smith??? Its not like he’s a household name who’s gonna grab headlines. I think there may be some truth to this rumor. While Randy Smith wasnt too great of a GM, I’ll take just about anybody over Purpura these days.

Does anyone know if Jim Deshaies was fired or suspended? I heard him on Wednesday (I think) say a word that he should not have said, and I was wondering if that is why he has not been calling the games recently? Thanks!

I don’t think the Astros are going to make any significant trade. They might like to trade Jennings, but I don’t see that there is much demand for a rental pitcher of uncertain health.

I think they may be ready to finally give up on Ensberg, but then again, who wants his salary?

I think the best bet for a trade, when he gets off the DL is Everett. Bruntlett is more than adequate defensively and wouldn’t be any worse at the plate, if given a chance to play everyday.

I think Loretta has proven he can man the position adequately the majority of the time also. Between the two that might be their best option for the next 2 or 3 years until someone better comes along. I don’t think Manzella would be an option, unless you want an Everett clone.

I think there is also a liklihood they will move Luke Scott. Biggio has not retired, or been benched as I said many times he would not. And I think there is a good chance he will return next year. I think management wants to give Chris Burke extended time playing in right field. Burke is Drayton’s boy. He has too much invested to give him up. In either case by playing him regularly the rest of the year, they will have a better idea of his capabilities next year if they think there is the possibility they can pressure Biggio to retire.

As for batting Bidge anywhere but lead off this year–it ain’t gonna happen. That spot is his personal possession as long as he’s an Astro.

And that would only be a big problem next year should they give him another shot.

Wow, Chip. Hunter at leadoff is an even worse idea than Hunter in the two-hole. As a freeswinger with power, he needs to be in the middle of the lineup where he’ll see strikes and drive in runs.

So, my question: Why is Bruntlett so invisible? He works counts, gets on base (.404 OBP), and has speed to boot. He’s clearly the only player on the roster who even remotely resembles a leadoff hitter (not to mention shortstop), and yet no one seems to even consider the possibility. I admit I’m no baseball genius, so someone please tell me what I’m missing. (And I will be skeptical of any argument citing career stats; he’s been impressive at RR and Houston this year.)